The steeple-sized snake ratcheted its jaws apart with distinctive clicks, until they snapped and crashed back together. Thousands of roaches flew off in every direction, some landing next to me, but they all scurried back to rejoin the main body of the viper.

The creature curved back and forth in the air, with certain sections along its length swelling and thinning unnaturally before regaining the solid form of a snake. Its maw creaked open again and a massive singular hiss came out from the beast, when it did, the ever-moving insects that made up its body remained still.

Then, they all shifted in different directions, causing the surface of the creature to ripple like water. "Why do you flee, Eater of Dreams? Do you fear me?"

The hairs on my body stood. Fear… But that would—

"Do not listen!" the vigilante yelled from the brush.

"SILENCE!" the viper hissed. "Why would one blessed with a Name of such magnitude trust this Nameless scruff? Those of great importance ought to help one another."

"Help? You're trying to trap me in—"

"I AM HELPING!" The snake shot out a layer of roaches. Bugs rained down like pebbles against the rock. "I saved you from the cold, warmed you, fed you, and showed you compassion in a domestic form. What more could you possibly desire?"

The dusting of bugs on the ground did not retreat back to the main body of the serpent, instead, they began encircling me, chittering out Kafk's words. "You humans, all the same. Blind to your own greed."

Oh great, now we've stooped to comments of my race.

The roaches at my feet closed in. "Come with me, where you belong."

I exhaled sharply. "Don't think I will."

As the words left my mouth, the critters surrounding me closed in, and the giant snake overhead lurched forwards. Roaches clung to my bare feet and climbed up my legs. I sprinted in the direction of the wanderer, but he had already disappeared. Leaving me behind, are we? Not that I blame you.

I recalled the brief glance at Maker's map and ran—hopefully—in the direction that led me out the Valley. I shook bugs off my legs in a series of strained hops and swatted at the ones already crawling up my chest. The flat stone underneath me rumbled, nearly throwing me off balance. Over my shoulder, the massive serpent crashed into the ground, losing its form as swathes of insects flooded out from underneath its massive weight. Then, the upper half of a snake erupted into motion.

I refocused my attention in front of me, and leapt into the forest, planting my feet into the soft dirt. Damp soil clung to my soles. But strangely, the forest wasn't as dense as before. The usual assortment of lush red leaves was absent along an unnatural path. On closer inspection, the floor was littered in shavings of leaf, and the fresh scent of shredded vegetation still lingered in the air. Wanderer cut me a trail…

But there was no time to admire his handiwork, especially since the trees had all been revealed through the lack of leaves, and it was impossible not to stare at them. Most of their thin branches had been caught in the vigilante's blade, but the thick ones remained. And they moved. For each tree my vision landed on, its branches that reached into the earth carried them along the ground. While they only shifted a hand's width for each step I took, if my gaze landed on a tree in the distance, it blocked my path by the time I caught up to it.

In a careful game of averting my eyes and focusing on the route in front of me, I managed not to slam full-tilt into any trunks. But as a consequence, I wasn't traversing the forest floor as efficiently as I'd have liked, and the sounds of skittering roaches were closing in.

Then, in the distance, peeking from above the tops of the trees: hints of bright blue light obscured by the heavy leaves overhead. The sky. It's the edge of The Valley.

I struggled to push against the growing exhaustion from within me, huffing air with staggered breaths. In my distracted effort, I lost the clear trail that Wanderer had cut for me, but it didn't matter, the edge of The Valley was close. Then, in an accidental glance behind round leaves I hadn't seen before, the trunk of a much taller tree caught my eye. Immediately, it creaked and toppled sideways, reaching across the forest floor at chest height. Without thought, claws sprouted from my hands and I tore into the wood, splintering chunks of timber across the forest.

My feet soon brought me to a shallow incline, leading to the promising blue sky. I worked my way up the loose dirt, pushing tiny avalanches down the slope, and finally, I crested over the top. Out of the Valley of the Dead, alive.

A sprawling field of golden grass spread across the horizon. Distant faded mountains topped with white peaks sprouted out from behind, and most importantly, nestled amongst the mountain range, a single massive pillar stretched upwards and pierced the sky.

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I scanned the immediate area and noticed someone was missing. Where is Wanderer?

From the depths of The Valley, came a desperate cry. It formed no words and only painted the distinct quality of terror. I shuddered, and my gaze lingered back to the monolithic tree. With a strained breath, I tore myself away from the towering beacon. The depths of The Valley stared at me, and sure to regret it, I slipped back into the thick forest.

There were no other screams of terror to guide me, and so, unsure whether to consider it a blessing or a curse, I could only continue in the direction from where I'd heard the first cry. Then, as I ventured deeper into the deathly wilderness, distant grunting met my ears.

I sprinted for the sound, and as it grew, so too did the chittering of roaches. The noises swelled with each step, increasing further and further in an endless staircase of volume. I pushed past heavy leaves and tripped over tree branches, stumbling to the ground and returning to my feet. Sprinting. Until, finally, I burst into a perfectly circular clearing. At its center: the bulky shape of a person carrying a lengthy blade.

The shape was made up of layers of roaches, and the blade belonged to the wanderer. He looked like a typical Scintish vanguard, except his armor moved around and didn't seem to give much room to breathe.

"Wanderer! I'm here to—"

The clear slicing ring of the vigilante's sword cut my words short—and nearly cut me in two. The shape swiveled again, mechanically swinging the blade along a circular path. A furious and desperate grunting came from inside the roach armor. Oh gods, what if he can't breathe?

There weren't enough bugs covering the man to account for all of Kafk's roaches, and I bet the rest of them would be headed straight towards us. Can't waste any time.

My arms sprouted six daggered claws and I heaved them into the air. Then, I slammed them down into the ground, planting them firmly into the soil. With my arms sunken into the dirt, I dug my heels in and tore a massive chunk of earth into the air. The momentum of so much earth almost tipped me backwards, but I shifted my foot and steadied myself, then I spun around, still holding the mass, and heaved it directly at the vigilante.

The figure spun and its sword slashed into the earth, cutting it in two, but also leaving me an opening. I followed behind the chunk of dirt and pounced on top of the mound of insects, grappling it with my claws.

Instantly, the roaches swarmed up my arms and covered me to my shoulders like a living layer of mud. As planned, the vigilante's confinement thinned, and his body twisted wildly in response. One of his arms whipped away from his sword, and his hand scraped a layer of bugs off his face. He gasped and spat lifeless carcasses from his mouth.

"Follow me!" I yelled and let my shadow claws fall away, along with the bugs that had crawled onto them.

The vigilante broke free from the pests around his legs, frantically wiping insects from his face and arms. Then, he sprinted right past me, shedding more critters than a flea-ridden cat. I followed close behind.

Soon, the same blue sky overhead peaked through the dense canopy.

"We're almost out!" I shouted ahead to Wanderer, who was still outpacing me, even along the path I'd walked before. "Just a little further and we'll be out!"

Before I could react, a wave of roaches flooded the forest floor, first sweeping the wanderer off his feet and then slamming into my ankles and flipping me into the air. I landed on my back in the rushing onslaught of roaches, thousands of tiny black bodies covering me and blotting out my vision. Bloody gods, where'd these fuckers come from?

I staggered to my feet and frantically wiped the bugs from my face, as the wanderer had done moments before. In front of me, the man himself stood, though strangely, without a layer of bugs covering him. Instead, all the critters were piling around me, forming a large mound up my legs, crawling onto my body.

The pile of insects paused and the sibilant sound of Kafk's teasing voice came from the movement of the horde. "I've caught you, Eater," it echoed. "Now… I wonder how you taste."

The viper's head took shape before me, building itself up in layers as roaches climbed atop one another to form its open jaws. They ratcheted once, twice. The terror wore off and I struggled against the body of the serpent that coiled up my chest. I couldn't move. Three, four times. I remembered Keeper in that moment. I remembered Watcher, too. And The Dream Eater who brought me here. Five, then six clicks. The seer, the gods. Seven. Even the face of my mentor flashed before my eyes. Eight, and the beast's jaws snapped shut. Everything went black and the forest was gone.

I had felt the impact, but that was all I'd felt. Beyond the instantaneous growth and cessation of pain, I could feel nothing. But it was different from going unconscious. That I'd done before. This was new. Empty. Losing consciousness felt like nothing, I didn't exist for that time. Now though, it was as if the world didn't exist, and only I remained. What's going on?

I took a deep breath. My chest expanded and slowly fell. Then I brought my hand up against it, feeling the slow rise and fall of my lungs. Am I dead? I can move my limbs…

I lifted one leg, and it came up off the ground without any difficulty. Then, I looked down, blinking intently. There was solid ground beneath my feet. I fell to my knees and ran my hand along the floor. It was smooth and familiar: something I could feel and touch. It was real.

I lay my face against the ground, letting the cold stone press into my soft cheek. My eyes blinked until my heavy lids could blink no longer, and for a moment I was back home. Laying there, it was as if I could feel the sun from my mentor's workshop beaming through the window, shining on the bare skin of my thighs. Warm. Inviting. Wait.

My eyes shot open, and my body shot awake in turn. But the darkness that had engulfed me moments ago was no longer present. Instead, my hand instinctively raised in front of my face to cover the blinding light in my eyes. What in the gods?

"What in the gods are you doing on the floor, Will? Get ready, busy day ahead of us."

I lowered my arm. The warm, radiant sun shone into my eyes and illuminated the room around me. I sat against the side of my bed, tangled in thin, ragged sheets. In the doorway to my quarters stood the casually posed figure of a young woman. My mentor, Ashencrest.